Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews will miss the rest of the season due to a left leg injury.
The NHL team says Matthews suffered a torn knee ligament and bruised quadriceps muscle in Thursday’s game against the Anaheim Ducks.
The club says it’s a Grade 3 tear of the medial collateral ligament. Matthews will be re-evaluated in two weeks.
The star forward was hit by Ducks captain Radko Gudas in the second period of Toronto’s 6-4 win at Scotiabank Arena. Gudas was given a major penalty for kneeing and ejected.
“Dirty play,” Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube said Thursday night. “League’s going to obviously look at it and see what the suspension will be or whatever happens.”
Trying to make a move around Gudas in the slot, Matthews took a direct blow to his left leg and crashed to the ice. The U.S. Olympic captain stayed down before being helped to the locker room.
Gudas is the bruising Czech defender who ended Canadian captain Sidney Crosby’s Olympics in the quarterfinals with a hit.
“He’s done a few of those before in his career,” Toronto winger Matthew Knies said.
Gudas was asked following Anaheim’s morning skate about trying to contain Matthews.
“We go to be on top of him,” Gudas said. “We got to make sure that he doesn’t get space in the middle of the ice … make his night’s not enjoyable.”
Ducks coach Joel Quenneville defended his player.
“There’s no premeditation,” Quenneville said. “Reflexes did it.”
Matthews snapped a 12-game goal drought earlier in the period on a power play. He has 53 points (27-26) this season for the Maple Leafs, who are 14th in the Eastern Conference standings with 67 points.
